The Raven and the Snake

Book 5 (18+ sex and violence)

Ariadne was now of age. She cooked and cleaned in the little house at the end of Spinner's End.

Snape returned with a small popping noise. His face was grim. Though he had joined the order willingly, he wasn't pleased with having to often visit the home of one his childhood bullies. In his youth, Sirius Black, her uncle had tormented him while at school together.

Ariadne didn't have much to do with her uncle, but she liked him well enough. She didn't have the same bitter resentment that Snape had. She prepared him a helping of dinner and he sat down stiffly.

This summer she had become like a house keeper for him. He wasn't around as much as she was. After passing her apparition test and coming of age, Ariadne was allowed to use magic without his presence to account for the trace all young wizards had so he could leave her for long stretches without worry.

Rarely was he gone for more than a day though. He worked tirelessly as a double agent. Her grandfather, the most evil wizard in existence, Voldemort; thought that Severus Snape was one of his most trustworthy servants. Snape was secretly working toward Voldemort's downfall.

Snape would go on errands for Voldemort then go to the Order to tell them everything. The Order would decide what he was allowed to share, which he relayed to Voldemort. Ariadne always went with him when he had to see her grandfather, but didn't often visit the Order's headquarters.

The headquarters were located in her uncle's boyhood home in London which he had inherited from his dark wizarding family. Her uncle knew what her purpose was, but didn't trust her and since the Weasleys had taken up temporary residence with him, she tried to stay back so as not to be asked questions that she couldn't answer.

Her cousin, Tonks, who was in the Order, thought that Ariadne was simply staying with Snape while she finished her time at Hogwarts as he was her head of house.

"We're leaving in an hour." Snape said coldly.

She gave a curt nod and left the kitchen to prepare. She preferred to dress in light, comfortable clothing around the house, but whenever she visited her grandfather, she dressed up.

Antigone, the snake she had received as a Christmas present from Snape, curled on the vanity, watching Ariadne touch up her makeup. Antigone didn't like Voldemort any more than she did, but it was a necessary evil for the war effort.

Snape approached Ariadne, she spotted him in the mirror, fixing her blood red lipstick. Her hair was braided and looped at her back and she wore a silk black dress that clung neatly to her curves. It wasn't immodest, but still quite sexy.

She tilted her head, watching Snape. "Do you think he'll approve?"

Snape looked uninterested in her efforts to look like a mature aristocrat. She was trying to match the image of a proud pureblood. He just nodded without any sort of commitment and stretched his arm out to her.

Antigone slithered around Ariadne's forearm and she reached to take his arm. They disapparated and apparated into a rather fancy sitting room that clearly belonged to a family of great wealth.

Voldemort was standing in front a lavish fireplace, looking down into the flames. The furnishing were all expansive and clean, but the portrait over the mantle had been slashed, obscuring the images of whoever had lived here.

Ariadne flitted to her grandfather's side, bowing gracefully. He reached a hand to cup her cheek with an indulgent smile.

"My child," he hissed in snake language.

She flushed with pleasure and kissed his palm. Acting was quite hard, but she got better every time. She didn't have any love for her grandfather and found everything he did repugnant. Only the necessity of being in his good graces for the war effort was what kept her from recoiling from his touch in disgust.